Finance

Finance

Students can complete 2-3 years of coursework at Kent State Stark before transitioning to the Kent Campus to finish their finance degree.

The finance curriculum is designed to provide a general program in the financial aspects of business, including financial management, investments, the financial system, international finance, and related areas. The courses are designed to provide students with an understanding of the relationships between business finance and our economic system in the context of analysis and decision making. Courses in banking, insurance, and real estate are also available.

Career Opportunities
The finance field offers students a very wide range of opportunities. A career in financial management involves forecasting, budgeting, planning and controlling the financial operations of a business. Financial analysts study and evaluate the financial performance of business for the benefit of managers and investors. In investments, securities brokers assist investors who buy and sell stocks, bonds, mutual funds and sophisticated investments such as options, futures contracts and derivative securities.

Portfolio managers supervise the investments of major institutions such as nonprofit foundations, pension funds, mutual funds and insurance companies. Investment bankers help companies raise funds from individual and institutional investors by helping them to sell new issues of stocks and bonds in the financial markets.

Banks, savings institutions, credit unions and finance companies make up a very large group of employers of finance graduates. Risk managers help businesses evaluate the need for various kinds of insurance coverage, as well as finding ways for companies to manage and reduce exposure to a wide variety of physical, personal and financial risks.

Personal financial advisers help individuals and families evaluate their financial situation and plan their insurance, investments, and retirement programs. In the area of real estate, there are opportunities in real estate brokerage (marketing and leasing properties), real estate appraisal (estimating property value), real estate investment and development (working for a company-managing their real estate investments and interests), and property management (working for a company-managing their property and interests).